The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 180 Still Able to Eat?
An envoy's mission is not something that can be accomplished overnight.

There is a lot of preparation work to be done beforehand.

For example, selecting accompanying officials and guards.

For example, prepare various documents in advance.

Most importantly, it is necessary to prepare contingency plans for different unexpected situations.

After all, Chengdu and Jianye are thousands of miles apart, and it would take months or even weeks for messengers to travel back and forth.

In an emergency, there will definitely be no time to communicate.

We can only make plans before setting off.

Then, Miwei was granted the authority to act expediently and make decisions on the spot.

The fake imperial tally was mainly used for this purpose.

Besides, since it is an alliance at the level of "two countries", it is only natural for them to exchange gifts.

In fact, Zheng Quan brought dozens of exquisitely decorated boats with colorful silks with him when he came to Sichuan.

The ship was also loaded with a lot of local specialties from Jiangdong.

For example, lacquerware, tortoiseshell, tea, and various gemstones of various kinds that are hard to categorize.

As a return gift.

Liu Bei gifted Sun Quan two hundred fine horses, twenty carriages, and various rare treasures from the South and the Western Regions.

In addition, Mi Wei also brought ten boxes of expedited printed copies of "Fayan" and thirty boxes of "Mi Shi Paper" as gifts to make friends with scholars along the way.

It was really just a side trip to advertise for the new paper.

Perhaps in the future, we can have another source of income from trade.

As for why the Fayan was chosen instead of other scriptures.

Firstly, as one of the representative works of Yang Xiong, a great Confucian scholar of the Han Dynasty, "Fayan" is itself a presentable gift.

Moreover, Yang Xiong was from Chengdu in Shu Commandery, and he also wrote the famous work "Ode to the Capital of Shu" (Yang Xiong version).

He can be described as a tailor-made spokesperson for the Shu Han dynasty.

Secondly, according to the traditional classification of classics, histories, philosophical works, and literary collections, the Fayan belongs to the "philosophers" rather than the "classics".

This makes it less likely to involve the debate between the Old Text and New Text versions of the classics.

I'm not afraid of offending people by giving the wrong gift.

Thirdly, Mi Wei's literary mentor was Pan Jun, who was a student of the great Confucian scholar Song Qian. Song Qian had written a commentary on the Fayan, and Pan Jun had previously taught Mi Wei a volume of the Yangzi Fayan Commentary.

With this lineage of teachers and students, it became natural for Mi Wei to present the Fayan (法言) as a gift, and it would not be considered pretentious.

In short, after a busy ten days, everything has been taken care of.

After bidding farewell to his parents and his wife, whose belly was now showing, Mi Wei officially embarked on his journey eastward.

The only subordinates accompanying him were Zhan Sifu, who had followed him since the Jiangling period.

There were also scribes Zhuge Qiao, and generals Ma Zhong and Wang Ping.

It is worth mentioning that the latter two, like Jiang Wei, also obtained the title of Yulin Lang.

He became a nominal member of the Imperial Guard.

Of course, just like Mi Wei's previous title of Fengche Duwei, this was only an honorary title within the Shu Han system.

It has little to do with actual leadership.

Mi Wei brought two people with him, mainly to facilitate the command of the accompanying guards.

The mission to Jiangdong this time involved a total of one thousand people, including civil officials and military soldiers.

There were three hundred Light Knights among them.

It can be said that they made quite a grand display.

However, on the very day of departure, Jiang Wei, who held only the title of Imperial Guard, took the initiative to come to the ferry to find Mi Wei and asked to accompany him:

“I have recently been studying the strategic location of Jiangxia. Although I have made some progress, I always feel that without personally inspecting the local mountains and rivers, I am bound to be all talk and no action.”

"General, you are traveling eastward along the Yangtze River from Shu, which is convenient for you."

Mi Wei glanced at him indifferently.

"to be honest."

Jiang Wei blushed and straightened his back, saying:
"As everyone knows, following the general will surely bring merit!"

Mi Wei pointed to the two generals, Wang and Ma, beside him:

"I already have enough officials; you're too late."

Having said that, he spurred his horse and rode away.

Jiang Wei was feeling secretly disappointed when he suddenly heard a voice coming from afar:

"We're still missing a knight to carry the flag."

"If you don't mind the lowly position, then come along."

Jiang Wei was taken aback, then overjoyed and agreed.

...After receiving the imperial insignia, General Zhu Ling stood beneath the walls of Hefei.

Looking up at the Zhang-character general's flag fluttering in the wind above.

Hesitated for a moment.

They ordered that the scepter be left outside the city.

They entered the city with only a small number of men.

At this time, the city was heavily guarded with watchtowers and soldiers patrolling back and forth.

It resembled a giant military camp magnified several times over.

Zhu Ling continued his journey, with the military officers conducting constant checks.

Even after he revealed the seal of the Rear General, it remained the same.

Those around him were indignant, but Zhu Ling stopped them all.

It wasn't until the group arrived at the military headquarters that they saw the old general sitting upright on his sickbed.

All discontent has completely disappeared.

Zhu Ling disregarded the fact that both of them were generals of the four directions and humbled himself to step forward and pay his respects.

With him taking the lead, his subordinates followed him without question.

After the ceremony, Zhu Lingcai took out the imperial edict and read it aloud.

The gist of the document is that former General Zhang Liao is permitted to retire in Luoyang so that his remains can be buried in the future.

However, Zhang Liao did not move an inch, and did not even glance at Zhu Ling.

Zhu Ling glanced at the half-bowl of frozen porridge on the bedside table, stepped forward, and said:

"Ling Su knew that General Zhang was determined to die on the battlefield, and dared not disobey him."

"However, the Wu bandits are fierce and stubborn, capturing a great general and annihilating the royal army, causing turmoil in Yang and Xu, and unrest among the people. Only a strong and capable general can reassure the people."

"I dare to ask the general: Is it possible to eat a dou of rice and ten jin of meat, and then don armor and mount a horse?"

Zhang Liao glared and spoke:
"Although Lian Po is old, he is not so bad as to defecate three times after a meal!"

Zhu Ling chuckled and didn't try to dissuade her any further.

Instead, he pointed to a minor official in black robes who was accompanying him and introduced him:

"He was a rice paddy guard in Shaobei Military Garrison."

"After the General Who Conquers the East was captured by the bandit Wu, Shouchun was thrown into chaos. Some bandits took advantage of the chaos to attack the military farms. He stepped forward and killed the bandits to protect the fields, thus earning merit."

He then said to the minor official:

"Deng Shizai, quickly tell General Zhang what you have seen and heard in Shouchun."

Deng Shizai is the same Deng Ai that someone had been thinking about.

Upon hearing this, he quickly stepped forward and stammered out his account of killing the thief.

The gist is that Cao Xiu's defeat resulted in the loss of more than half of the Yangzhou army.

This further squandered much of the military prestige that Cao Wei had built up in the Huainan region over the years.

As is well known, the Cao family established their state based on two things: military prowess and the righteous cause of protecting the Han emperor.

After Cao Pi usurped the Han throne and established himself as emperor, only the character "武" (military) remained.

If even the "martial arts" are lost in the future, what will the Cao family have left?
Of course, Deng Ai didn't put it so bluntly, after all, he couldn't even speak fluently.

However, Zhang Liao was, after all, a veteran general of Cao Wei, and he had long been aware of such matters.

After a moment of silence, he looked with interest at Deng Ai, who held a lowly position, and asked:

"You understand military strategy?"

Deng Ai's breath hitched suddenly.

My heart was instantly filled with turbulent waves.
This man before me is none other than Zhang Liao, Zhang Wenyuan!
The top general outside the royal family!
If I gain his favor, will I be able to escape my humble origins, display my talents, and rise to great heights?
At this moment, Deng Ai wished he could shout, "I am well-versed in military strategy and have always served the general at his side!"

However, as the words came to mind, he inexplicably recalled the scene of being reprimanded by the Agricultural Commandant earlier.

His primary job was as a farm official.

Agricultural officials who neglect farming and talk about military affairs are neglecting their duties.

Will Zhang Liao punish him under military law?
From what I've seen along the way, this man is clearly a general who is strict in managing his troops.

Or perhaps it was because Emperor Wu of Wei had always admired the teachings of Shen Buhai and Han Fei.

Among the generals from other clans who rose to prominence under his command, few were lax in their military discipline.

Deng Ai hesitated for a moment, which Zhang Liao took as a sign of weakness.

So he stopped making things difficult for the young man of low rank and little reputation, and instead smiled and said:
Those who have made contributions should be rewarded.

"Shouchun is now in chaos, no place for us to stay."

"Since you are more familiar with farming, I will write to recommend you for a better position elsewhere."

"Xu Jingshan, the Agricultural Commandant of Yingchuan, and Lu Zijia, the Agricultural Commandant of Suiyang, are both men of great talent and virtue. Which place do you wish to go?"

(End of this chapter)